Tuesday, December 06, 2016

Yesterday, the Florida Times-Union editorial board said that
the appointment of Larry Robinson as interim president at Florida A&M
University is a positive step toward moving the school in the right direction.

From “FAMU seems to be getting back on track”:

…In the aftermath of [former President Elmira Magnum’s]
negotiated departure from the school, there is a fresh opportunity for FAMU to
unify as an academic family.

And the university must seize and capitalize on the moment.

There are good signs that is happening. The university has
named Larry Robinson, a renowned chemist and longtime FAMU professor, as its
interim president.

Friday, November 04, 2016

The BOG’s policy of “confirming” the presidential selections
of public university boards of trustees has a controversial past. Back in 2009,
state Sen. Don Gaetz (R-Niceville) introduced a bill that clarified the fact
that only university trustees had power to appoint and supervise the chief
executives of their respective schools. It was widely seen as a rebuff of the
BOG’s attempt to gain more control over presidential hiring and evaluation
decisions.

Gaetz’s bill passed in both the Florida Senate and House of
Representatives. It had the support of FAMU advocates such as then-Sen. Al
Lawson. Gov. Charlie Cristsigned it into law on June 23, 2009.

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Earlier this week, Florida A&M University (FAMU)
announced the receipt of a $15.4 million award over five years from the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Educational Partnership
Program (EPP) to establish the Center for Coastal and Marine Ecosystems
(CCME). The new award will allow the FAMU-led partnership to make
profound national impacts on coastal and marine ecosystems education, science,
and policy. The full suite of academic partners include:

Bethune-Cookman University

California State University – Monterey Bay

Jackson State University

Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi

University of Texas – Rio Grande Valley

The award was made after a national competition with
rigorous criteria established by the NOAA EPP.

Thursday, September 15, 2016

FAMU President Elmira Mangum has gone on administrative leave today
as a result of the terms of an agreement between her and the Board of Trustees.
The leave will continue through the remainder of her contract, which will
expire on April 1, 2017.

The FAMU Board of Trustees (BOT) approved the agreement
today with a 10-1 vote.

Sunday, June 05, 2016

A change.org petition by the anonymous “Rattlers4FAMU Real
Rattlers” wrongly gives FAMU President Elmira Mangum all of the credit for the transfer of
federal land in Brooksville, Fla. to the university.

“Dr. Mangum's leadership ensured the transfer of nearly 400
acres from the United States Department of Agriculture to FAMU- the largest
transfer ever to an HBCU,” the petition says.

The petition, which asks the FAMU Board of Trustees to grant
Mangum a contract extension, is incorrect about the amount of federal land that
was transferred to the university. It was 3,800 acres, not 400 acres.

“Rattlers4FAMU Real Rattlers” also ignored the fact that the
transfer agreement was signed before Mangum even came to FAMU.

Monday, March 21, 2016

FAMU President Elmira Mangum talks often about how the
ribbon-cutting for the 3,800 acre federal land transfer in Brooksville, Fla. took place
during her second year in office. But she doesn’t talk as much about the fact
that the agreement to transfer that property was actually signed by Interim
President Larry Robinson and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack in 2014.

Last week, the Mangum administration sent out a press release that bragged about FAMU’s improvement in the state performance-funding
metrics.

“The improvements shown in our 2014-2015 performance metrics
are a reflection of the FAMU community unifying to ensure progression in our
student success efforts,” Mangum said in the
announcement.

Robinson’s name wasn’t mentioned even though most of the “marks of
excellence” FAMU received were based on data or work from the 2013-2014 year.

Saturday, April 05, 2014

On Thursday, state Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, suggested
that former FAMU Interim President Larry Robinson and new FAMU President Elmira
Mangum were favorable to the idea of splitting the FAMU-FSU College of
Engineering. Robinson and Mangum both took Thrasher to task for
mischaracterizing their positions.

According to the Tallahassee Democrat, “Thrasher said
Robinson and former FSU President Eric Barron had been discussing the topic ‘for
a long time’ and insinuated their agreement to the plan.”

Robinson says he never agreed to any such thing.

“My position has always been that this is a bad idea,”
Robinson said. “You have what has been held up as a model of collaboration
nationwide, and here we are talking about separating it without any solid
reasons for doing it. All this talk about how Robinson and Barron agreed to it,
is really comical to me.”

Monday, March 10, 2014

Resilient, humble, selfless and dedicated. These were the
praises sung by members of the FAMU Board of Trustees as they honored Interim
President Larry Robinson at his final Board meeting before turning over the
reins of the university to incoming President Elmira Mangum.

Mangum begins her tenure as FAMU’s CEO on April 1.

During the March 6 meeting, the Board presented Robinson
with an honorary FAMU Rattlers football helmet, signed by each member, to
signify his vast contributions as the “captain” of the FAMU team for the last
19 months.

“Thank you for what you have done, thank you for your leadership
and thank you for where FAMU is today,” said Trustee Marjorie Turnbull.

Sunday, March 09, 2014

FAMU will host the “Dr. Larry Robinson Endowed Scholarship
Appreciation Reception” on Tuesday, March 18, at the Hotel Duval Horizon
Ballroom, located at 415 N. Monroe Street, from 6-8 p.m. Tickets for the appreciation
reception are $100 and can be purchased online at www.FAMU.edu.

“Dr. Robinson has been an exemplary leader and supporter of
FAMU and his service to the university deserves to be recognized,” said Interim
Provost Rodner Wright, event chair. “It is an honor to create an endowed
scholarship in his name and continue his legacy of ‘Excellence With Caring’ for
generations to come.”

During a recent trip to Tampa, FAMU National Alumni
Association chapters and leadership kicked-off the fundraising efforts for the
endowed scholarship with pledges and checks totaling $30,000.

Monday, March 03, 2014

After receiving an overwhelming response from last year’s
Annual President’s Tour, FAMU Interim President Larry Robinson will return to
several South and Central Florida cities to recruit the best and brightest high
school seniors.

The 2014 President’s Tour is scheduled to begin March 8
through March 10 stopping in Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Myers, Tampa and Miami.

Last year’s President’s Tour ignited a ten percent increase
in admissions applications at FAMU, as nearly $325,000 in scholarships were
awarded.

The annual tour is an effort to recruit some of the
top-performing students in the state of Florida. Robinson
will meet with students and parents to award scholarships on the spot to
students who meet Presidential Scholarship requirements.

FAMU and many other historically black colleges and
universities were hurt by stricter eligibility requirements for the federal
PLUS Loan program that the U.S. Department of Education implemented in October
of 2011.

The PLUS Loan changes resulted in thousands of low-income
HBCU students being denied this critical source of financial aid and either
having to withdraw from school or delay their entry into college.

Back in the Fall of 2012, a total of 569 FAMU students were
denied PLUS Loans. More than 800 FAMU have been affected.

The new recruiting strategy of Florida A&M University
(FAMU), strengthened by this month’s clean health ruling from the Southern
Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) is
boosting the university’s admissions applications, the institution’s chief
executive says.

So far applications for the fall, 2014 academic year are up
10 percent compared to this time same a year ago, said university interim
President Larry Robinson. The increase indicates success so far in FAMU’s more
feet-on-the-street, earlier in the recruiting season, new message strategy,
Robinson said in a brief interview as the university approached the last days
of fall and prepared to close for its winter break.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Despite what Chuck Badger, Elizabeth Davenport, and the
Tallahassee Democrat have said, the FAMU Board of Trustees never adopted a
policy that restricts the university’s current interim president from submitting
an application to lead the school on a permanent basis.

Article 5.6 of the FAMU board’s operating procedures says: “No
business will be transacted without an affirmative vote of the Board, and a
majority vote of all the members of the Board is required for establishing
policy, for making rules and regulations, for appointing and removing the
President, and for approving or terminating programs.”

The FAMU Board of Trustees NEVER voted to restrict the
current interim president from applying for or being considered for the permanent position. The
minutes of the trustee meetings held on July 16, 2012 and August 15, 2012, which
have been accepted by the full board, prove that fact.

No vote. No policy.

Chairman Chuck Badger made an honest mistake when he claimed
that the board approved a policy that bars FAMU’s interim leader from applying
for the permanent presidency. He needs to step up acknowledge the fact that he
gave inaccurate information to the public. But that’s a topic for another
editorial.

Today’s editorial is a plea for Rattlers to wake up and come
to terms with reality. Larry Robinson is not going to submit an application to
become the 11th president of FAMU.

Monday, December 16, 2013

On Sunday, the Tallahassee Democrat’s editorial board urged
the FAMU Board of Trustees to change Larry Robinson’s title from interim
president to permanent president.

Even though the editorial board said that board members
should pass “a motion allowing Dr. Robinson to apply for the position,” such a
motion isn’t necessary. The board’s own records show that FAMU trustees never voted to restrict Robinson from being appointed to serve as the university’s 11th
president.

From the editorial: “Robinson should be FAMU's next
president”

Florida A&M University’s board of trustees has set an
ambitious goal of naming the university’s 11th president by Jan. 9, the same
week that classes begin for the spring semester.

It is hard to believe that the search will uncover a more
qualified candidate than Larry Robinson who has served as interim president at
FAMU for the past 18 months.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Earlier today, at its annual meeting in Atlanta, Ga., the
Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC)
lifted the 12-month probation status placed upon FAMU in December 2012. No
further reports are required from the university.

“We are extremely pleased with the decision by SACSCOC to
remove the probation sanction, which signifies that Florida A&M University
is in compliance with the standards of the regional accrediting body,” said
FAMU Interim President Larry Robinson. “As a member institution of SACSCOC, we
fully appreciate the peer review process and we are committed to continuing the
work needed to maintain the high standards of the commission.”

Monday, November 25, 2013

The culture of hazing that has plagued the FAMU student body
for years won’t disappear overnight, but the university scored a critical victory
against it during the 2013 marching band season.

FAMU’s Marching 100 is done with its football halftime performance
schedule for this school year. There were no reported incidents of
hazing.

Former FAMU President James H. Ammons suspended the 100 in November,
2011 following the hazing death of drum major Robert Champion, Jr. According to
the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, Champion “willingly participated” in a violent,
unauthorized pledging ritual aboard a parked bus after that year’s Florida
Classic in Orlando.

At Ammons’s request, the FAMU Board of Trustees approved a
new comprehensive Anti-Hazing Plan. It introduced new band regulations that
included a four-year cap on the number of years a student can participate in
music department bands, a requirement that all band members be enrolled
full-time at FAMU, and a ban on practices that are not supervised by music
department staff.

Thursday, October 03, 2013

FAMU presented $1,026,584 in scholarships to Atlanta area
students on Friday, Sept. 27 during its President’s Tour.

During the recruitment fair, which was held at the Hyatt
Regency-Atlanta, interested students had the opportunity to meet with
recruiters from various colleges, schools and departments, and receive
one-on-one assistance.

“I love that FAMU came to Atlanta to recruit,” said Zakiya
Abdullah, who plans to study physical therapy at FAMU next fall. “I was one of
the first people at my high school to have my permission slip signed to attend
the event.I’ve heard so many great
things about FAMU.”

There were performances by the theatrical company, “FAMU
Connection,” and appearances by the FAMU Royal Court, presidential ambassadors
and university administrators.

Sunday, September 01, 2013

Sylvester Young, FAMU’s director of bands, delayed the
Marching 100’s departure from Tallahassee for two hours on Friday as he and
other university officials double-checked the eligibility status of each band
member. Staffers verified that each student who boarded one of the buses met
the enrollment and GPA standards required for participation.

The five buses carrying 146 band members, Young’s assistants,
and chaperones then finally left the state’s capital city and headed toward
their destination in Orlando.

Saturday morning, the Marching 100 was up bright and early to appear at the MEAC/SWAC pep rally in Disney World’s Magic Kingdom. It kicked off its performance with the 20th Century Fox theme song. FAMU Interim President Larry Robinson then took the stage to offer words of encouragement to the band students who will be seen by an ESPN audience of millions this weekend.

Let Them Know How We Get Down: Anytime. Anyplace.

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